


Gone Batty

by Classic_Rocker2000



Category: The Beatles (Band)
Genre: AU, Gen, Vampires, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:55:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27022366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Classic_Rocker2000/pseuds/Classic_Rocker2000
Summary: George finds a bat out his garden late one night. Said bat turns out to be Stu.
Relationships: George Harrison & Stuart Sutcliffe
Comments: 13
Kudos: 12





	Gone Batty

**1967**

George wasn’t sure what to think when he saw a tiny, fluffy, brown bat huddled in the zinnias. First, it certainly didn’t look like any bat that might be found in England (going off his cursory knowledge of bats). Second, even if it had, George wasn’t sure if bats lived anywhere near London. Third, he couldn’t even tell whether it was a fruit bat or a vampire bat.

Either way, the little guy looked scared and maybe just a bit sickly, and George felt compelled to help it.

_ Well, I might get rabies from this, but… I don’t know of anyone else who’d be willing to help this guy out. _

With a gentle hand, George picked the bat up and carried him inside. Surprisingly, the bat, though looking a bit panicked, didn’t try to bite him. Rather, after a few minutes, it seemed to settle into George’s hands, looking slightly more relaxed. George was certain this wasn’t normal bat behaviour, but at the same time, he wasn’t about to just leave it out in the bushes.

The more George thought about it, the more he realized he didn’t know the first thing about taking care of a bat. The most he could say he knew about bats was that they ate either fruit or bugs or drank blood. George thought,  _ Maybe if I just give this little guy a shelter for the night and take him to a vet tomorrow? _

The bat nestled in his hands let out a tiny little chirp as George rubbed his thumb just behind its ear. George couldn’t tell at first whether that was good or bad, but seconds later, it let out a second one, sounding content. It was the cutest thing George had seen all night, but he knew he was the furthest thing from an expert.

As he took it into the kitchen, George placed it on the kitchen counter, watching it as it eyed its surroundings curiously, much like a small child. Once again, George found himself wondering if it was normal for a bat to be behaving this way, but then he reminded himself that he knew nothing about them. Still, he figured that he should at least get a dish towel or something of the like to at least provide a makeshift bed for it.

Almost as soon as George turned around to grab a small dish towel, he heard a loud clattering, and a suspiciously human sound (almost pained, if George had to guess). Rushing back to the counter, George found not a bat resting calmly on the countertop, but a young man, lying prone on his back on his kitchen floor. George thought to call the police, but his limbs wouldn’t respond to his brain’s commands. Meanwhile, the man suddenly lying on his floor propped himself up, allowing George to see his face.

George almost passed out from the shock.

There, sitting on his kitchen floor, was Stuart.

George didn’t know how it was possible. Part of his brain was screaming at him that Stu was a vampire (he could certainly see the fangs sticking out from just under Stu’s upper lip), but he remained in disbelief. Before now, he was certain that vampires were creatures of fiction, reserved for the likes of dreary soap operas and Victorian horror novels.

For his part, Stu didn’t look like he knew what to say or do either. If anything, he looked more embarrassed and scared than evil. Eventually, the young man, frozen in time, simply said, “Uh… Hey, Geo.”

“Whatever you do, please don’t kill or turn me!” George managed to stutter out.

Stu looked taken aback. “Why on earth would I do that? Even if I wanted to, killing you would take four or five days, and if I wanted to turn you, you’d have to die with my blood in your system.” He must have noticed the fright in George’s eyes, because he followed up with, “Sorry, I don’t know why I thought leading off with that was a good idea.”

George felt his heart rate start to decelerate a little. Despite the sheer impossibility of the situation, George could tell that Stu was still the same kid he’d known in Hamburg several years ago. Still, he couldn’t help but wonder, “How did this happen?”

George wasn’t aware he’d said that out loud at first, but Stu, who by now was standing at his full height (such as that was), replied, “Well, I don’t really remember turning into a vampire. Just the headaches I kept getting before I died. Maybe some vampire saw me and noticed what was happening, but I don’t know what a random vampire would want with a sickly art student. I just know that… I didn’t have the easiest time after I woke up.”

An awkward silence filled the air, allowing George to move closer to Stu. Eventually, he asked, “How long after did you wake up?”

“I’m not sure. I remember digging myself out of my own grave, so at least a week or two. That entire period is more of a blur than anything.”

The two stood there for a few moments, before George asked, “Why didn’t you tell any of us?”

A pained look flashed through Stu’s eyes and he let out a sigh before answering, “If I’m being honest, I was scared. Of what I was, how you guys would react... I wanted to see Astrid more than anything, but I was too scared to try, knowing I was, for all intents and purposes, a dead man.”

Tentatively, George placed a hand on Stu’s shoulder. Stu looked at him in a moment of shock, but George offered the best reassuring smile he could manage, even though his own nerves were still running high. Almost unprompted, Stu said, almost playfully smirking, “You know, I’ve been watching you guys take over the world.”

“You too?” George quipped.

“Well, between hiding from the world and coming to terms with becoming a vampire, it was one of those things that kept me sane. Painting also helped but picking up supplies got a bit harder given that I was constantly lying about my identity and moving around.”

“…You want a cuppa?”

“Well, I would say yes, but after I turned, fruits and insects are the only thing I’ve been able to stomach that isn’t blood”

“So, does that make you part fruit bat then?”

Stu chuckled a bit. “I suppose.” A few seconds passed, before Stu asked, “How are the others doing? Aside from the whole globally famous thing?”

“Well, if I’m being honest, the fame and fortune gets tiring, but aside from that, I don’t think we’ve changed all that much over the years.”

“C’mon, Geo, don’t sell yourself short!”

“I’m serious!”

Stu nudged him gently at that, a smile on his face. If George didn’t know better, it would have been easy to assume that he and Stu had just run into each other for the first time in years (minus all the circumstances that had led to this moment).

George stole a glance at the clock, which showed that it was half past twelve. George asked, “Just out of curiosity, about how harmful is sunlight?”

Stu grimaced. “I haven’t been able to set foot in direct sunlight in five years. It’s not as bad with windows, but it still stings.”

“And… feeding?”

“The one thing I’ve been wholly grateful throughout all this is that I only need maybe a pint of blood to survive a night. You don’t need to worry; I took care of that earlier in the evening.”

_ That explains that bit about it taking four or five nights to kill someone,  _ George thought. He asked, “Where’ve you been staying?”

“Just about anywhere that I can find where I won’t be in the sunlight. Whether that’s indoors or outdoors is variable.”

He could feel his heart rate pick up again, but that was because he knew it was insane. Pattie was asleep right now and he was far too scared to wake her now, considering everything he’d have to explain. Still, he really didn’t want to see Stu off knowing the kid didn’t have anywhere viable to stay. Finally, he said, “Hey, Stu? Would it be alright if I asked if you wanted to stay here for a while?”

Stu stared at him for almost a minute, before saying, “George, you realize that’s insane, right?”

George inhaled sharply. “I know.”

“I mean, it certainly beats having to find a hotel before sunrise, but… what’s Pattie gonna make of this?”

“Well, I can either tell her a friend of mine fell on hard times and needed a place to stay, or I can say that I found a sick bat in the gardens.”

Stu glanced at the clock now, it now being a quarter to one. It being early summer, they both had several hours before the sun rose. “Never thought I’d say this, but I think you’re crazier than John now.”

“I know. But it beats having to take a chance on finding somewhere to stay, right?”

“I suppose.” Another thought crossed Stu’s mind, “What if the others find out? John and Paul, and so on?”

“I’m not sure. But, if I know anything about them, they’ll probably understand.”

“I don’t know about Paul though. He still seems to have a propensity towards being an arrogant prick.”

“He can be. But he’s also grown up a bit since then.”

The two of them stood there for a long while, but eventually, Stu replied, “Alright. But… you do realize there are at least five billion ways this could go wrong, right?”

George nodded, glancing down at his feet. “I know. But we can figure this out as we go along, okay?”

When George looked back towards where Stu was standing, there was an empty space. Instead, he felt a sudden weight in the pocket of his jacket, and found a bat there, staring up at him while chirping. Letting a smile come to his face, George chuckled. “So, I take it you can’t talk in bat form?”

Stu shook his head. Instead, he let out another chirp, and closing his eyes, he rested his head against George’s chest. George knew that he still had no idea what the hell he was doing about any of this, but at the very least, Stu could help him figure that out in due time.

For now, George just wanted to figure out where the hell he could house a vampire that would work whether he was a bat or a rough approximation of a human. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, it's been a hot minute, hasn't it? First off, apologies that it's been almost a month since I've posted anything. I've been focusing on schoolwork at the moment. I'm still doing my best to work on fics during my spare time. 
> 
> Spoiler alert: This will probably not be my only fic where one or more of the Beatles are vampires. 
> 
> As always, comments, kudos, and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated!


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